They deceived you and said it was a strike 

The youth of April 6th is fuel for the battle of the loser, which is the homeland

When the mist dominates the sky of events and the gray color imposes its dominance, the truth must be lost, the truth will be lost and the papers will be mixed, so that our eyes cannot distinguish between the perpetrator and the victim, and our ears are unable to differentiate between calls that hope for the face of God and the homeland and others that hope for the face of the devil who stirs events from behind the curtain.

Something like this is happening in the Egyptian arena now in what is known in the media as the April 6 strike, and recent years have witnessed the growth of the protest movement of various kinds among large sectors of the Egyptian people, a movement that is ignited by economic and social pressures, and benefits from the state of the relative political movement that Egypt is witnessing in The last four years, specifically since the constitutional amendments in 2005.

Consequently, Egypt has witnessed a huge number of peaceful demonstrations, vigils, sit-ins and strikes since this date and perhaps a short period before it. The Ministry of Finance, as well as the sit-in of Mahalla textile workers demanding their share in the company’s profits, the demonstrations of education teachers and the strike of group teachers to demand improvement of their financial conditions, as well as the sit-in of journalists to demand their technology allowance, which was delayed in payment.

Egypt has also witnessed a number of peaceful demonstrations calling for political reform or denouncing the external conditions that affect the Egyptian national security, as happened during the recent Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, which ignited the spark of anger in the Egyptian street. The boycott of Israel.

All these events and others cannot be considered as a violation of the rules of peace and societal security or a breach of the law. Rather, they are among the rights recognized by international human rights charters and covenants, and the states and governments that work to suppress these peaceful protest forms are held accountable.

But does the next April 6 strike apply to it the same description? Is it considered a form of peaceful protest that is recognized and protected by the International Bill of Human Rights?

The next question is who is behind the April 6 strike? Given the good intentions and innocence of the young people who use the international information network to convey the call to strike, are these young people the main drivers of events? Or are they fuel for a battle in which they have neither a she-camel nor a camel? They pay the price of political conflicts and regional balances, and are used as a pressure card on the Egyptian political decision

All these questions may be answered in the present paper, and they may remain pending until another strike.

Strike: concept and types

The strike means the temporary collective abstention from the work required of the strikers under the contracts concluded with the employer or their obligations towards him, which occurs as a result of disagreements between the two parties and the intention of returning to work after the disputes are resolved.

Therefore, the characteristics of the strike are:

• collective abstinence from work

• Temporarily, it is withdrawn after the disappearance of the reasons.

• The intention of this refrain is to put pressure on the employer to achieve the strikers' demands.

The strike differs in terms of quality, either it is public, with workers abstaining from work completely or inwardly through slowing down in work despite its continuation.

It varies in scope. It may be a general and comprehensive strike for all workers across the country. Unions usually carry out such strikes or partially for a specific category or facility, and a specific part of the workers occurs. The strike may be temporary with a specific short or long period, or it may be open until the strikers’ demands are met.

The strike differs in terms of the motive. It may be professional to demand some professional rights, such as an increase in wages or a reduction in working hours, and the motive may be economic. In this case, the strike may include large sectors in protest against state measures such as imposing taxes or adopting a certain economic policy that harms society. The strike may be in solidarity with another category of strikers in support of them, and the strike may be political in response to a specific position of the state in political situations or to meet some political demands.

Strikes end with one of three outcomes. Either the strike is successful when the strikers’ demands are met, or it fails when their demands are not met and the strike ends. The success may be relative to reaching a formula that satisfies both parties. The strikes have economic, social and legal effects according to the strike’s breadth, intensity, and the sectors it includes.

It becomes clear to us here that the strike is a guaranteed right for professional and trade union considerations in the first place and is linked to the fulfillment of certain demands in this context, and it should not go beyond that to become a general civil disobedience.

Strike in the International Bill of Human Rights

International attention to the issue of human rights in general and economic and social rights in particular has gone through stages that actually began at the level of modern international action with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, which stipulated a number of economic, social and cultural rights as general principles, and the International Covenant on Political and Civil Rights came in 1966 to also stipulate some rights Related to trade union organizations, such as the right of individuals to form and join unions, and the International Covenant on Economic and Social Rights was the most concerned and clearest text on the issue of the formation of unions and its foundations and the rights owed to workers and unions

The goals of establishing economic and social rights are numerous, including achieving social justice, insurance against sickness, poverty and inability to work, eliminating unemployment, and creating decent work opportunities for individuals. Despite this, attention to economic and social rights from a legal and practical point of view was late compared to the attention received by political and civil rights. Although economic and social rights are what give political and civil rights their content and content.

Economic, social and cultural rights are defined as a set of rights that give individuals the right to obtain basic services from the state as the political group in which they live, and it represents the second generation of rights, and is also described as positive because it focuses on the need to make an effort to rid the human of what he suffers from Difficult economic and social conditions to distinguish them from political and civil rights and freedoms, which are described as negative, given that they do not result in states other than simply refraining from placing obstacles or restrictions that prevent them from achieving them.

The economic rights are basically the right of every citizen to work in equal conditions, the freedom to join unions, and the right to strike. The right to housing, the right to assistance, the right to development, the right to a clean environment, the right to services, the right to resort to the judiciary to request its inalienable rights, and cultural rights are the right of every citizen to education and culture, and to raise his children properly.

The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights issued in 1966 included a set of international guarantees to protect and guarantee the rights and freedoms it guarantees. It was approved by the General Assembly and considered effective since 1976. It is one of the most important and prominent international conventions that guarantee the right to strike and define its conditions.

Whereas Article 8 of the International Covenant on Economic and Social Rights states that the states parties to this covenant undertake to ensure the following:

(A) The right of every person to form trade unions jointly with others and to join the trade union of his choice, without restricting other than the rules of the organization concerned, with the aim of promoting and protecting his economic and social interests. The exercise of this right shall not be subject to any restrictions other than those provided for by law and which constitute necessary measures, in a democratic society, to maintain national security or public order or to protect the rights and freedoms of others

(B) The right of trade unions to establish federations or national alliances, and the right of these federations to form or join international trade union organizations,

(C) The right of trade unions to freely carry out their activities, without restrictions other than those stipulated by law, and constitute necessary measures, in a democratic society, to maintain national security or public order or to protect the rights and freedoms of others.

(D) The right to strike, provided that it is exercised in accordance with the laws of the country concerned.

This article refers to several matters of utmost importance and danger, and may be responsible for causing confusion in the minds of jurists, politicians and trade unionists, and the most important of these matters are the following:

• The strike must be called and organized through the formation of a legitimate union.

• The strike in this way is not a comprehensive strike that stops all aspects of life in society, but it is a sectoral one carried out by a certain group at a specific time to achieve certain demands of interest to the group calling and executing the strike.

• It must be done within the law.

 Strike in foreign legislation 

Strikes were at first considered a means of obstructing the achievement of personal freedom and disturbing public security. This situation continued until the middle of the nineteenth century, during which the second half witnessed the recognition of the legality of the right to strike, as in Britain in 1875, in France in 1864, in Belgium in 1866, in Germany in 1869 and in Italy in 1890 M. Despite the legality of the right to strike, there are some restrictions placed on their exercise of this right, the most important of which is the obligation of strikers to inform the official authorities before an appropriate period of the date set for the strike. Some legislations have prohibited strikes in specific sectors that they see as affecting public services or national security, and deprived others of the right to strike. Legislation strikes at specific times such as wars and crises.

Hence, we realize the importance of taking into account the public interest when calling and organizing strikes and not deliberately causing a major disruption in the societal system, which is what the legislation of developed countries drew attention to a century and a half ago and what was approved by international human rights charters and covenants after that.

Strike in Egyptian Legislation

The Egyptian Constitution of 1971 stipulated in its first chapter a set of economic and social rights under the title of the basic components of society socially and economically.

The constitution stipulates in its article (54) that citizens have the right to gather in private quietly, unarmed and without prior notice, and that security personnel may not attend their private meetings, and that public meetings, processions, and gatherings are permitted within the limits of the law.

Then came the Unified Egyptian Labor Law No. 12 of 2003, setting specific conditions for the strike. According to the text of Article (192), workers have the right to a peaceful strike, and it is exercised by their union organizations in defense of their professional, economic and social interests, within the limits and in accordance with the controls and procedures established in the law, and in the case of the intention of the workers of the establishment The same trade union committee to strike In the cases permitted by this law, the trade union committee - after the approval of the board of directors of the general trade union concerned by a two-thirds majority of its members - must notify each of the employer and the competent administrative authority at least fifteen days prior to the date set for the strike, by registered letter with acknowledgment Also, the general union, after the approval of the majority of its board of directors, must notify the strike in advance, provided that the notification includes the reasons for the strike and the time period specified for it.

In addition to the text of Article 194, which prohibits strikes or calling for strikes in strategic establishments in which the cessation of work results in a breach of national security and the services they provide, as well as vital establishments in which the strike leads to disruption in the daily life of the public of citizens, noting that a decision is issued by the Prime Minister specifying these establishments. In 2003, Prime Minister Decree No. 1185 was issued regarding the identification of vital strategic installations in which a strike is warned, and the first article of it decided that it warns against a strike or calling for it in vital or strategic installations that stop work, leading to a strike in the daily life of the public of citizens or the absence of national security. The basic services and among these establishments are the following:

(National security and military production facilities - hospitals, medical centers and pharmacies - bakeries - mass transportation for passengers - means of transporting goods - civil defense facilities - drinking water, electricity, gas and sewage facilities - communication facilities - workers in educational institutions)

In Article 195, it was stated that the strike entails the suspension of the work contract during the strike period and the non-entitlement of the wage.

Article 124 of the Egyptian Penal Code stipulates that if at least three public servants or employees leave their work, even if it is in the form of resignation, or deliberately refrain from performing one of the duties of their position, agreed upon, or seeking to achieve a common purpose, each of them shall be punished by imprisonment for a period of no less than Three months and not exceeding one year, and a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds.

The maximum penalty for this penalty shall be doubled if the abandonment or refusal would put people’s life, health or security in danger, or would cause disturbance or strife among people or harm the public interest.

Every public official or employee who leaves his job or abstains from doing one of his job duties with the intention of obstructing the flow of work or disturbing its regularity shall be punished with imprisonment for a period not exceeding six months or a fine not exceeding five hundred pounds, and the maximum limit for this penalty shall be doubled if the omission or omission would result in a life People, their health or their security are in danger, or if it would cause disturbance or strife among the people, or if it harms the common good.

Legal scholars decide that this article was abrogated by Egypt’s ratification of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which permits the right to strike.

 The Strike Movement in Egypt: A Historical View

The right to strike dates back to the time of the pharaohs in Egypt and ancient Rome, since 943 BC, when the workers of a city in the western mainland of Luxor revolted after their in-kind wages were delayed. After this date, about three thousand years, and during the digging of the Suez Canal, 5 thousand workers went on strike who refused to work and declared disobedience.

The importance of the protest movement has increased in recent times after the economic, social and political developments, the doubling of the population, the increase in problems and disputes between workers and employers, whether private or governmental, the cost of living, the increase in inflation rates and the spread of unemployment. We will review here the most famous strikes in recent years.

1- The railway workers’ strike in 1986: the workers stopped the trains until their demands were met, at which time the judiciary issued a historic ruling acquitting the accused, stressing that the workers have the right to strike according to international agreements that supersede any local law because Egypt is a signatory to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. And in implementation of the contemporary trend in the strength of the international legal base as opposed to the local legal or legislative base.

2- The strike of workers at the Iron and Steel Factory in 1989, the main cause of which was the dismissal of two elected members of the board of directors, and the security regime dealt with the strike, as armored vehicles and special forces stormed the factory; As a result, one worker was killed and 15 others injured.

3- The spinning and weaving workers’ strike in Mahalla al-Kubra 2006, where 27,000 workers demonstrated, then went on strike on 12-7-2006, demanding the payment of profits in accordance with Prime Minister Decision No. 467 of 2006, stopping “corruption” in the company, dismissing its chairman, and withdrawing Trust from the trade union committee. At that time, observers described this strike as the largest in 12 years.

4- Shebin al-Koum spinning strike on February 4, 2007, in which the workers refused to hand over the factory to the Indian investor who bought it except after paying the profits of 133 days and spending 45 days, which are the profits decided by the Prime Minister and the matter ended with the issuance of the Minister of Manpower and Immigration Aisha Abdel Hadi, a decision to pay 45 days as a grant and 133 days as profits, calculating the days of the strike as working days, and raising the meal allowance from 32 to 43 pounds, which represented a victory for the 10-day strike.

5- The April 6, 2008 strike The call for the so-called April 6 strike began as soon as a general strike was called on one of the Internet websites. Through many media, such as the Internet, blogs and mobile phones, it represented a major challenge to the role of traditional mobilization institutions such as political parties and professional and labor unions, and opened the door to reviews and reconsideration of how to benefit from technological technology in supporting mass mobilization processes to express different demands. Egyptian labor and popular forces have exploited, supported and expanded the call in protest against the rise in prices, low wages and the loaf of bread crisis, and called for radical solutions to the successive crises on Egypt.

The government has warned of the consequences of civil disobedience, participation or invitation, and has already deployed thousands of its elements to thwart this popular movement, which is intended to be general and continuous.

Many believe that the call has completely failed from two main angles: first, that sectors of citizens did not participate in this call. Second, there are sectors of citizens that felt anxious and felt fear as a result of the ambiguity of the call, the ambiguity of its means, the ambiguity of its goals and the ambiguity of its parties, as any of the major parties in the country did not participate. He did not agree to such an invitation, but the Muslim Brotherhood supported it.

It is clear that the last April 6 strike is called a strike because the precise description of it is civil disobedience.

6- Pharmacists’ strike in February 2009 after the Ministry of Finance and the head of the Tax Authority retracted the tax accounting agreement with pharmacists, which stipulates that pharmacies be held accountable as small projects, and that they provide ledgers that accurately determine the value of their revenues, expenses and net profits, which the pharmacists considered an aggression against their legitimate income and profits, so the General Syndicate of Pharmacists established The Egyptian government announced a comprehensive strike and the formation of committees to manage the pharmacists’ sit-in in all governorates and a main committee to supervise and follow up on the strike in all governorates, and that this strike is not limited in duration and will continue until the Ministry of Finance retracts its decision, provided that the sit-in is open to the general union and subsidiary unions, and that the formation of Disciplinary committees for those who violate the decisions of the General Assembly.

This entailed the decision of the Minister of Health to open all pharmacies of the Egyptian Drug Company, pharmacies of public and central hospitals, and pharmacies of the Health Insurance Authority.

Most of Egypt's pharmacies witnessed an unprecedented interaction with the decision of the Extraordinary General Assembly of the Pharmacists Syndicate, and according to some opinions, the response rate reached 98 percent.

And, of course, the pharmacists' strike has to a large extent the pillars of the legitimate strike, even if there were rumors about its disruption of a vital facility, which is the health facility.

April 6 strike call truth and lies

The call for this strike came on the anniversary of the last strike on April 6, 2008, by a group calling itself “April 6 Youth.” According to the statements of the youth and what was stated in their call for the strike, the strike will include peaceful demonstrations and protests in the main squares in the governorates and in front of the headquarters of the National Party and the Federation of Egyptian Trade Unions and the Journalists Syndicate in central Cairo, in addition to universities, factories, and unions that have factional demands that the state has not responded to.

Through it, the callers to the strike define their demands from the Egyptian government, which are: “setting a minimum wage of no less than 1,200 pounds to ensure that the citizen lives with dignity and feels safe for his future and the future of his children, linking wages to prices, controlling the market and preventing monopoly, and electing a constituent assembly to draft a new constitution for the country. It guarantees political and trade union freedoms and limits the presidential term to two terms at most.

It becomes clear to us by following the movements and statements of the youth group and by monitoring what was stated in their call and the available media materials in this regard and through the position of the political parties on the strike that:

• There are many indications that someone is behind the strike and exploits the enthusiasm of the youth in this matter, regardless of the intentions and purposes of the party or organization behind the strike, and regardless of the extent to which it is linked to an internal or external agenda.

• The call is not for a legitimate strike, but for civil disobedience. There is a big difference between the two.

• Advocacy is a disruption of the interests of citizens and may lead to obstruction of the daily life of the people.

• There is no union organization behind the strike, and there are no specific factional demands.

• The call to strike took place outside the framework of the law.

All of these reasons are enough to remove the matter from the jurisdiction of Article 8 of the International Covenant on Economic and Social Rights, which provides protection for the strike as a form of protest.

Hence, in Maat - and by virtue of our human rights orientations - we are biased towards the right to freedom of expression, freedom of peaceful demonstration and freedom of strike guaranteed by international conventions, but we are against practicing this away from the texts of these charters and outside the framework of the law, and against calling things by their names. For the purpose of gaining popular sympathy, obtaining political profits or settling regional accounts.

We also see that there is a problem that must be resolved, which is the extent of the penetration of democratic and peaceful culture within society, and the extent to which citizens are aware of both sides of the equation. Doing it in order to control the behavior of all, and to realize the statement that everyone who has a right is given his due.

Finally, Maat calls on the government to take the issue of development seriously and develop a systematic strategy to achieve social justice in its various dimensions and components so that community peace prevails and the cloud of ambiguity and ambiguity clears, and we can get out of the gray space.